Israel Bombs Gaza’s Al-Ahli Hospital, Taking it Out of Service
Gaza City’s Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital, the last fully operational medical facility in northern Gaza, has been bombed by an Israeli air strike.
The attack obliterated critical infrastructure, including the intensive care and surgery departments, plunging the region’s already fragile healthcare system into deeper crisis.
This marks another chapter in the relentless targeting of Gaza’s hospitals, protected under international humanitarian law, amid Israel’s ongoing military campaign.
A Devastating Blow to Healthcare
The pre-dawn strike followed an Israeli military warning to evacuate the facility. Patients, some still in hospital beds, and medical staff were forced to flee into the darkened streets.
The health ministry reported that one child died during the rushed process, unable to receive urgent care. Gaza’s Civil Defence noted the destruction of the oxygen generation station vital for intensive care units.
“The bombing led to the destruction of the surgery building and the oxygen generation station for the intensive care units,” a spokesperson stated.
The Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem, affiliated with the hospital, condemned the strike, noting its occurrence on Palm Sunday, “the start of the Holy Week, the most sacred week of the Christian year.”
Israel’s 'Justification'
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) claimed the hospital housed a Hamas “command and control center.” No evidence was provided to support the claim, and Gaza’s civil emergency service reported no direct casualties from the strike itself.
Hospitals are shielded under international humanitarian law, yet Gaza’s healthcare infrastructure has been systematically targeted. Since October 7, 2023, Israel’s genocide has claimed over 50,944 Palestinian lives, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
The destruction of 34 hospitals, as reported by Gaza’s Government Media Office, raises urgent questions about accountability.
A Legacy of Suffering at Al-Ahli
Al-Ahli Hospital has endured repeated assaults under Israel’s unrelenting campaign against Gaza’s civilian infrastructure.
In October 2023, a horrific attack on the hospital claimed hundreds of Palestinian lives, with local officials pointing to an Israeli strike as the cause. Israel’s attempt to shift blame to a misfired rocket by Palestinian Islamic Jihad — a claim swiftly rejected by the group — did little to ease the grief of a community already reeling from loss.
Now, this latest bombardment has shattered a vital sanctuary where displaced Palestinians, including vulnerable women and children, sought refuge, underscoring the deliberate erosion of Gaza’s ability to care for its people.
A Bleak Future for Gaza’s Patients
With Al-Ahli out of service, patients have been transferred to overburdened facilities like Shifa and Al-Quds hospitals, themselves barely functional.
Critically ill patients, including those in the surgical and emergency units, are now left without shelter or oxygen
Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum from Deir el-Balah.
As Israel expands operations, including the Morag corridor and encircling Rafah, Gaza’s civilians face an escalating humanitarian crisis.
The international community’s silence grows louder with each hospital reduced to rubble. Gaza’s Government Media Office labeled the attack a “heinous and filthy crime,” accusing Israel of deliberately dismantling healthcare.
As truce talks falter in Cairo, the loss of Al-Ahli Hospital underscores a grim reality: for Gaza’s wounded, there is nowhere left to turn.